Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Kiribati instead of Samoa, you would:
Health
be 29.1% less likely to be obese
In Samoa, 64.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Kiribati, that number is 45.6% of people as of 2024.
live 5.2 years less
In Samoa, the average life expectancy is 72 years (70 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024. In Kiribati, that number is 67 years (65 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024.
see 15.5% less spent on your healthcare
Samoa spends $475 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Kiribati spends $401 as of 2023.
have 12.7% less access to essential health services
Samoa scores 55 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Kiribati scores 48 as of 2021.
be 45.6% more likely to die by suicide
Samoa has a suicide rate of 12.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Kiribati, it is 17.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
make 56.4% less money
Samoa has a GDP per capita of $5,873 as of 2025, while in Kiribati, the GDP per capita is $2,559 as of 2025.
Life
be 20.8% less likely to die during childbirth
In Samoa, approximately 101.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Kiribati, 80.0 women do as of 2023.
be 3.2 times more likely to die during infancy
In Samoa, approximately 12.3 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Kiribati, on the other hand, 38.8 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 18.8% more likely to have internet access
In Samoa, approximately 75.3% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Kiribati, about 89.4% do as of 2024.
be 20.5% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Samoa, approximately 99% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 99% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Kiribati, that number is 79% of people on average (90% in urban areas, and 64% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 3.0 times more on education
Samoa spends 5.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Kiribati spends 16.4% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 61.5% more on healthcare
Samoa spends 6.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Kiribati, that number is 10.9% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 2.8 times more coastline
Samoa has a total of 403 km of coastline. In Kiribati, that number is 1,143 km.
Safety
be 35.4% less likely to die in a road accident
In Samoa, road accidents kill 9.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Kiribati, they kill 6.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 96.6% less home broadband
Samoa has 0.9 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Kiribati has 0.0 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 63.1% less CO2
Samoa emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Kiribati emits 0.6 tonnes as of 2024.
be 44.1% more likely to die from air pollution
In Samoa, air pollution causes 34.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Kiribati, it causes 49.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Samoa vs. Kiribati
Kiribati: At a glance
How big is Kiribati compared to Samoa? See an in-depth size comparison.